Original 1958 McCall's Party Apron - Designed by Luis Estévez for Quaker Oats

Original 1958 McCall's Party Apron pattern, designed by Luis Estévez exclusively for the Quaker Oats Company and given away free inside Quaker cereal packages. A petite women's half apron, gathered at the waist with a ruffled top edge and a wide sash tied in a bow. Factory Folded and Unused; issued without an envelope.

Quick Facts

• Pattern Number: None -- McCall's Party Apron, a Quaker Oats premium
• Year: Dated 1958, found in a Quaker Cereals advertisement
• Garment: Party Apron, designed by Luis Estévez
• Size: One Size
• Condition: Factory Folded, Cereal-Box Premium (No Envelope, as Issued)

Design

As shown in the original advertisement, this is a short, full half apron gathered onto the waist, with a ruffled heading that stands up above a wide sash tied in a generous bow. Quaker's ad called it a petite party fashion and promised it was easy enough to make by hand: the whole apron is cut from a single pattern piece. Shown in white with bold red polka dots and a red sash, it was meant for entertaining rather than scrubbing pots.

A Moment in Fashion History

In 1958 Quaker Cereals packed this free McCall's pattern inside boxes of Puffed Wheat, Puffed Rice, and Muffets Shredded Wheat. Shoppers whose grocer didn't yet stock the special packages could mail a boxtop to the McCall Corporation in Dayton, Ohio. The same promotion offered a choice of three McCall's dress patterns for a boxtop and 25 cents, all by Luis Estévez, the Cuban-born designer Quaker billed as an international award-winner. Putting a designer's name on a breakfast-table giveaway shows how firmly home sewing and fashion were tied together in the late 1950s, when even a party apron could carry a designer label.

Illustration

Issued as a cereal-box premium, this pattern never had an envelope; the McCall's title printed on the pattern itself is pictured. The second image is the original 1958 Quaker Cereals advertisement that offered it, showing the finished apron as Luis Estévez designed it.

Connections

This pattern is part of our exhibit, Kitschy Kitchen -- McCall Edition, a growing collection celebrating the whimsical, decorative side of kitchen textiles. While I love everything about McCall, it must be said, "McCall Makes the Cutest Aprons!"